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Counting Down to Two Years: Weekend Herb Blogging Recap

This is Weekend Herb Blogging #94, which means in ten more weeks we'll celebrate two years of Weekend Herb Blogging. Even though I can barely believe it's here, I've been thinking about what to do for the two year anniversary. For those who missed it, for the one year event, we asked bloggers to write about their favorite herb, then collected all those posts into a big collection of Favorite Herb Recipes From Around the World. I'm not the only one who's been thinking about the upcoming anniversary. Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once had an idea of asking people to post about their favorite vegetable this year. I like that idea a lot, and what a great collection of vegetable recipes that would be! We have ten weeks to decide how we'll be celebrating, so let me know in the comments if you have thoughts about this.

Again this week there's a huge collection of interesting recipes from around the world using herbs, plants, veggies, and flowers, and the cool thing is that since my trips to San Francisco and Blogher 07 in Chicago, there's a bunch of entries this week from bloggers I've met. How fun is that? If you're reading this on the main page of Kalyn's Kitchen, use the link that says "For recipe, continue reading" to see what people have been writing about.

Gurgaon, Horyana, India

Very early this week comes an entry from The Singing Chef, who you'll even hear singing if you have your sound turned on. She shares a recipes for Garlic Sambar or Pondu Kuzhambu, which she says is very tasty with rice, and I believe it.

New Jersey, U.S.A.
Cate of Sweetnicks has been pretty busy celebrating the 5th birthday of Nicholas, the namesake of her site, but she is still finding time for a little cooking. This week she switched from her usual roasted carrots to make a recipe of Sauteed Herb Carrots, and she says it's definitely a repeater.

Trinidad, California, U.S.A.
Christine from Christine Cooks is one of the food bloggers I met in San Francisco, and I'll tell you, she's so fun to hang out with. She's heading off to Ashland to the Shakespeare Festival there, but before she left she sent a great recipe for Braised Pork with Pappardelle Pasta, with rosemary and thyme bumping up the flavor.

Manila, Phillipines

Joey from 80 Breakfasts admits to being a "hopeful romantic," a trait that might come in handy since she's venturing into gardening. If you have ideas for growing or using Lemon Thyme, head over to her blog and cheer her on as she tries her first attempt at growing herbs.

Zurich, Switzerland

I love learning about new plants, and Myriam at Once Upon a Tart has some Moroccan Mint, a plant that's new to me but sounds wonderful. She's using her fresh mint to make some Peppermint Sirup, which sounds like it would be delicious on so many things.

Halifax, Novia Scotia, Canada
It was great to finally meet Ruth From Once Upon a Feast at Blogher; I just wish I'd been feeling better because she was one of many people I would have talked with a lot more. Ruth is adjusting to her life in a new place with no grill, and judging by the (cilantro marinated) Pan Grilled Seared Tuna and Shrimp she made this week, she's going to be just fine.

Georgia, U.S.A.

Sharona from Bird Food is featuring mint at her herb of choice this week. She's using it in a recipe for Sweet and Sour Drumsticks which have so many other great flavors to compliment the mint; they sound just delicious.

Toronto, Ontario, Canada
I'm very jealous of Peter from Kalofagas, who is taking off for a trip to Greece very soon. He's already daydreaming of some of the wonderful food he'll be having there and has created his own version of Warm Grilled Calamari Salad in anticipation of it!

Tallinn, Estonia
Foraging for wild plants and turning them into delicious delicacies has become a fun hobby for Pille from Nami Nami and her boyfriend K. This week she has found a plant called Meadowsweet and used it to make a refreshing drink called Meadowsweet Cordial. (I believe this is a distant relative of what is called Lilac in the U.S. What do you think?)

Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.
The charming Terry from Blue Kitchen and his wife Marion were two more people I got to meet far too briefly at the food blogger dinner at Blogher. Another time! Terry hasn't always been a fan of peaches, but this year they have really caught his fancy, and his Arugula Salad with Peaches and Goat Cheese sounds like a combination I'd definitely love.

Landau, Germany

I love all types of onions and garlic, but I had to confess to Helene from News From Our Kitchen that I haven't cooked that much with leeks. They do sound delicious though as a supporting player in her version of Quiche Lorraine with Leeks. (And if you ask very nicely, possibly Helene will tell you why she's baking so many little quiches, then wish her luck!)

North Carolina, U.S.A.
Next is a very interesting dish from Asha of Aroma, who is featuring fennel seeds, something I just love. Kashmiri Yakhni is an exotic type of yogurt based fennel and cardomom gravy, and Asha is giving very good instructions about how to make it in this excellent post.

Bay Area, California, U.S.A.

I've become charmed by the blog Briciole, where Simona is helping me remember the Italian I studied briefly *so many* years ago. This week she's featuring Cavolfiore, used in a type of pickle called Giardiniera, and if you don't know what those two things are, head over to Briciole and get some help with your Italian.

Toronto, Ontario, Canada
I think being inventive with your ingredients is the sign of a good cook, and this week Kevin from Closet Cooking had to get a bit creative when he was missing one of the ingredients for his Chicken and Mango Curry. I do think the substitution he came up with was a great, see what you think of the idea.

Barcelona, Spain
Welcome back to Kel from Green Olive Tree, who is returning to Weekend Herb Blogging after a while, and she's done some lovely redesigning on her blog too. Kel has been practicing her risotto skills and offers us Herbed Risotto with Portobello Mushrooms which looks and sounds just fantastic.

South of France, Near the Border of Spain
Riana of Garlic Breath is embarking on an ambitious project to cut down the purchase of non-essential things for one year (one year!) I do believe she might be inventive enough to achieve it too, and you'll agree when you see the Vietnamese Vin de Noix she has made with green walnuts. Don't know what Vin de Noix is? Check out her blog.

Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.
I'm always impressed with people who make their own pizza, especially if they use whole wheat crust! Erin at The Skinny Gourmet has not only made whole wheat crust, but how do you like the Sound of Artichoke and Purple Basil Pizza? I thought so, and there's also some interesting info about purple basil in this post.

Country Victoria, Australia
Pam from Backyard Pizzeria has managed to convert her husband to quite a few vegetables over the years, but this time he just said no! No matter, Pam got to have the Brussels Sprouts with Feta all to herself, and it does sound very tasty.

Iowa City, Iowa, U.S.A.
Genie from The Inadvertent Gardener is another online pal I got to meet at Blogher. We were even roomies for a night, but I was pretty sick and Genie was getting up at the crack of dawn to catch a plane, so we didn't really get to stay up late giggling like a couple of sorority girls. Like I keep saying, another time! Now that she's back home, Genie is back to cooking, and I just love the sound of her Grilled Figs with Rosemary and Honey that she sends for WHB this week!

Soddy Daisy, Tennessee, U.S.A.
It was fun noticing that Pam from Sidewalk Shoes is another blogger/teacher, and she sounds like a busy woman. She's also someone who realizes that simple recipes can taste fantastic, and her version of Grilled Rosemary Potato Packets sounds like it would truly taste great.

Trinidad
I'm sure one of the great things about living in a tropical paradise would be the wonderful fruit, and Sarina from Trini Gourmet is really enoying mango season in Trinidad. She shares photos of some of her favorite mango varieties, as well as some tasty-sounding mango recipes too.

Oshawa, Ontario, Canada

Sarah at What Smells So Good likes to make food that's nutritious, and this week she's created a delicious sounding version of pesto with a surprise ingredient to bump up the nutritional value. Think about what might make pesto more nutritious, then check out Sarah's version of Vegan Fat Free Garlic and Red Pepper Pesto to see if you guessed it correctly.

Davis, California, U.S.A.
Sher from What Did You Eat always makes food that sounds good to me, and this week her Red Bell Pepper and White Bean Soup with Arugula sounds like a perfect ten! Sher is having sore feet leading to a sore back, and I hope she can just put her feet up and eat soup like this for as long as she needs to take a little break!

Melbourne, Australia
I have nothing but admiration for Haalo of Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once, not only for her great photography skills, but also because she does seem to try cooking so many interesting dishes. This week she is testing her culinary skills on Seville Orange Marmalade, and it looks and sounds wonderful.

Sydney, Australia
If I hadn't been reading food blogs, I might not know that what's called swiss chard in America is called silverbeet in many countries, and what an amazing-sounding recipe Anna from Morsels and Musings has come up with for this easy-to-grow vegetable. Anna admits it's a bit rich, but close your eyes and imagine the taste of Hot Silverbeet Cheesecake with silverbeet, onion, garlic, cream cheese, sour cream, feta, parmesan, and eggs. No wonder Anna calls it "one of the most delicious recipes ever."

Andalusia, Spain
Zorra from Kochtopf has some delicious tomatoes and basil growing in her garden, and she's combined them with some of her famous homemade bread for an appetizer that combines two famous Italian recipes. Check out her version of Bruschetta Caprese and see if you don't agree that this is a great idea.

Heart of the Vendee, France
Katie from Thyme for Cooking has been lamenting her lack of tomatoes as summer is barely coming to her area, but she's definitely making the best of the things her garden is producing. This week it's parsley, in a very interesting and yummy-sounding Lentil and Herb Salad. There's a surprise ingredient here too, which I must have more of.

Central Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
Next up is an informative post from Kenny at Veggie Gardening Tips about Corn Smut. Kenny informs us that corn smut can actually be eaten, but if you don't quite want to go there, he also tells you how to get rid of it.

New York City, New York, U.S.A.
Another nutritious and interesting creation from The Chocolate Lady from In Mol Araan who is making Rye and Flax Crackers this week. She decided to make these when she has sprouted rye berries left over from another very interesting-sounding recipe, but you'll have to go there yourself to see what that one was!

Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.A.
My own contribution this week was a recipe for Lamb Souvlaki which features Greek oregano, and yes, there is a different between Greek oregano and Mexican oregano, so don't use them interchangeably please! I loved this souvlaki where I went totally against tradition and just cooked the lamb cubes directly on the grill, no skewers.

That's it for week #94 of herb blogging! Don't forget to give me your feedback about how we should celebrate when the two year anniversary comes around, because it'll be here before you know it.

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The round-up is exploding, Kalyn -- this is so terrific! I'm just dying to try so many of these recipes.

I really like the idea of blogging about our favorite vegetable. Another thought, for this year or next, a recipe that involves herbs and/or vegetables and/or fruits that ties in to a story from our childhoods? Or our favorite memory of an herb or vegetable? Just throwing those out there as possibilities.

I'll vote for veg...but how can I decide? I have a favorite for each season!Great round-up - lot's of new stuff and new people (or new to me)It's a rainy day so I'm going to curl up with my computer and have a good read...

What a delightful collection of recipes and a great round up! Thanks for taking time Kalyn!:)Two yrs of WHB! WOW!!I would love the idea of blogging and cooking with vegetables.I grew some typical Indian vegetables this year.I will be too happy to send some dishes to ya!

Thanks for the ideas everyone. I'm mulling them over in my mind to see what would be fun and universal for the two year anniversary. (And I agree with all of you who said you can't believe it's been two years!)

Kalyn thanks for the info in re freezing herbsQuestion? at the time you have rolled the frozen herbs and alot of the leaves come off you were not specific in re do you store in ball jars in or out of the freezer?Thanks alotSteve

Christine, Sue, Chris, Helene, I'm having fun mulling over ideas in my mind for two years!

Steve, sorry if I wasn't clear; I'll go back and check that! I sometimes just leave them in the bag in the freezer, but you can also take the leaves that fall off and put them in a jar and then put the jar back in the freezer. You do need to keep them frozen.

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